08 Sept 2025
Scalable pattern for Series B and beyond
Layering some of my responsibilities
Legitimize people to hold them
Homogeneity of seniority
Create strong independent business units
Redefine & strengthen the role of Product Manager & Product Designer
Product Manager (business)
Staff Engineer (Technical)
Product Designer (design)
Developers Senior/intermediate/junior
“A squad is like a mini-startup. They are self-organizing and have autonomy to decide what to build, how to build it, and how to work together while doing it.” — Henrik Kniberg, Spotify
Ownerships
Being a mini CTO/Head of Engineering at the squad level
Role
Ownerships
Acting as a mini CEO within a squad.
Role
Ownerships
Guardian of design and customer experience within their squad.
Role
Staff Engineer
Senior dev
Intermediate dev
Intermediate dev
Junior dev
Junior dev
Product Designer
Staff Engineer
Intermediate dev
Intermediate dev
Product Designer
Product Manager
Staff Engineer
Senior dev
Intermediate dev
Intermediate dev
Junior dev
Junior dev
Product Designer
Next Product
Staff Engineer
intermediate dev
Product Designer
Product Designer
Next dev
Staff Engineer
Senior dev
Intermediate dev
Intermediate dev
Junior dev
Product Designer
Product Manager
SRE Manager
Dev ops
From "decider" → "enabler": ensuring alignment of staff engineers with product goals rather than making all calls myself.
From "organizer" → "architect of structure": Squads self-organize within their scope. Focus on defining scopes clearly, ensuring boundaries are healthy, and facilitating cross-squad communication.
From "mentor of all" → "mentor of leaders": Less time mentoring every dev directly, and more time mentoring staff engineers + PMs, who then multiply that impact.
Strategic focus: More time for long-term vision (tech strategy, hiring plans, career paths, scaling practices) instead of daily delivery details.